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Nur
Nur is a continent of islands in the world of Crowlion, situated in the northern hemisphere in the astronomical model or the upper half of the 9 planes cosmology model next to the Azura continent. Lore The word Nur has many potential meanings. The root of the word is lost as it was passed down orally over centuries. Nevertheless, many have assumed it was "remnants" or "pieces" as to represent the scattered islands that make up the continent or even for the Story in the Mythic. There is no accepted meaning for Nur which is a persistent question asked throughout it's history. Nur was part of the super continent that saw Nur, Azura and the mysterious islands to the south merged into one. After a series of undocumented or unknown events, the continent was separated. The most accepted argument would be the migration and conflicts of God's and Demigods from the continent "Tausky". Nur later suffered another calamity sinking most of the continent. At the time, humans had already began building vast powerful civilizations throughout Crowlion. Tausky saw the rise of the Rhyceleron/Rhicelrons. Nur too would see the rise of a super empire centered around a mysterious object called the "Nexus". They would eventually fall by the wrath of Asura. Once the entire civilization sunk, the scattered groups of races on each island slowly redeveloped what was once lost. In time they learned to work together, share crops, build houses and foster communities. The people over time forgot about their past and what was lost in order for them to progress. Here, Nur was born. At the beginning of the Ethos of Nur, many small nations had already begun to spring up. Although each developed in solitude, they were aware of each other and equally wary. Ships sailed in the many across the seas of each isle and trade became the bread and butter of Nur. Technology and especially magic began developing at a rapid pace. In the second millennia, Nur as of known had the most powerful magics associated to them compared to the other continents at the time. One day, an Oracle appeared before the four largest kingdoms at the time, the four islands. No one knew where she came from or where she went after, she left only one message however: only one kingdom shall rise, the others will fall, and it will be the champion of that kingdom who finds the truth of the Nexus. Many knew the Nexus she referred to was the Nexus in the mythic. The conundrum was where was it? For all the kingdoms only one logical place made sense. One single island, shrouded in mist; a legendary isle with very little known information and countless heinous rumours about its residence. The kingdoms all sought for the exploration of this isle. Thus, this sparked the age of the adventurers. This was three decade ago, many adventurers had attempted to search for the Nexus but many have failed. It was not until the advent of Nur's 2nd millennia did the threads of fate weave together and a door to a new era begin. The ethos of Nur. Introduction What is the reason we talk with others? Why do we interact with each other, learn from each other, converse with each other? Some could say it is to improve our own 'self', by enriching our lives with the knowledge and experience of other like-minded people, thereby furthering ourself towards being a more 'complete' individual. What if we don't want to be a better person? We are graced with the freedom to choose, be it to further one's greed or to lend a hand to the sick and feeble. This freedom, bestowed by gods that sit above us all and the great divine that sits above even them, could be said is the very reason we wish to coerce with others. Individuality can be scary, some may wish to avoid others from fear or instead wish to seek company for the closure that other people share the same experience as they do. Ultimately it doesn't matter your reasoning, people come together, they unite and civilisations are born brimming with culture each one being different from person to kingdom to country. There are some that do not wish to take the path that the rest take, they stray away looking for something else, be it adventure, fame or treasure, these ones walk a path they created, they chose. In the continent of Nur these few people are known as adventurers, all classified together under the same name while each adventurer is nowhere similar to the next. One can summarise every single adventurer the same, for what they are seeking is a desire within themselves, Ethos. Geography Nur is a composition of multiple islands. Historically, there are multiple interpretations of how Nur came to exist, the most commonly accepted one is Asura's battle with the Dragon King of the sea described in the Mythic. Although it might have been exaggerated, it was said that Asura stomped on the once great landmass of Nur and trampled it into the ocean. The resulting islands afterwards became Nur. Much of Crowlion's demigods have largely been a topic of debate, do they exist within another realm? or do they exist in the physical plane? What is their relation to Crowlion's grand scheme or do they exist in tandem to Crowlion's actual gods? For Asura to step on Nur, Asura would have to be very large. He would be so big that the astronomical model would have no way to explain how Asura could support himself in Crowlion's atmosphere, this supports the plane model. The argument then changes to asking if the myth is accurate, since it's impossible to have something as large exist, Nur possibly suffered a different fate. Over time more and more islands were being discovered. A persistent issue about Nur is that mappers have difficulty identifying all the islands. The legendary explorer, Pythaes couldn't even map Mystikur accurately due to a variety of frustrating problems, one such being the mystic nature of Nur. He describes how there is a residue of magic that blankets the continent. Sometimes you walk into an uncharted area that has never been seen before but then, as you leave, the location may disappear. Many have suspected that Nur may be filled with mirages while others believe it could be doors to some place else. Important notes: What is the ethos of Nur? This refers to the era when the meaning of "Nur" was discovered. It symbolises finding your own meaning inside a world that doesn't give you one, referring to how RPGs are games where you choose and find the role you want to play. Why is Nur separated from Azura? In the lore, this is because the historical remnants of the super empire that ruled in Nur dotted the section that happened to be in the zone that was lost. As a result of history, Nur was adopted as a separate continent to Azura but many prefer to merge the two together as one continent as 'Nurzura' though some Azuran fanatics may say Nur is Azuran too. Nevertheless you can see names like the west continent and east continent being used. What is the Nexus? The Nexus is a secret. In the centre lies the secret of Nur and the catalyst that caused the fall of the Super empire. Who is Asura? Why is he spelt differently sometimes? Azura is the name of the east continent, Asura is a Demon in Nurzuran mythology who was also a demigod that possessed the power to rip planes and fight great Titans of enormous magnitudes such as Long. Who or what is Long? Long is the Dragon king of the sea. His history is largely unknown and I won't be revealing much of him anytime soon. All I can say is he is the both the strongest dragon and creature in the entire world. He physically exists in Crowlion but has, through sheer power, the strength to rip into other planes and bend rules of reality. He lives in the ocean but can walk, fly and most importantly, shapeshift. What are the four kingdoms? The four kingdoms, also known as the four islands, are the pillars of the Nexus. Situated roughly on all four compass points, they developed their nations, united the clusters of isles around them and established empires that now see the whole sea and continent thereafter. They are also the receiver of the prophecy from the Seer. Ethos doesn't have a strict main storyline, there is what could be considered a story for Ethos in the piecing parts of the story from completing quests and dungeons. For example the guild quests typically are dungeon crawls or retrieval tasks that has you venture to the central island, while more complex quests can be given and completed by factions such as the four kingdoms. Mystikur for example allows you to complete quests for the Elven monarchy which in turn both gives favour and unlocks mysteries of the past. Nurian Culture Nurian culture is supposedly rooted previously in the traditions of a great lost Nurian civilisation. When the last civilisation fell however, the people that were scattered on the small islands were just groups of remote villages with little understanding of the mystical world they unknowingly live in. There is a split with how time and seasons are recognised. Remote communities and villages tend to use lunar calendars based off two of the three moons of Crowlion while adventurers and larger cities all use Mystikur's calendar which is based on lengths of seasons in Nur as seasons can last longer or shorter every year. Religion can be scarce and varied. There are customs, superstitions that nearly everyone believe in different ways. When it comes to religions however, it is in very much the aspect that before you proclaimed you were part of a religion, folk wouldn't have to first ask since it tends to be quite obvious from the temperament that religious people usually exude. The Mythic The mythic is a story about the origins of Nur. It is split into three passages, the first describes the origin of the world and Crowlion, the second describes the origin of Nur and life, the third describes the fall of early Nur and the fight between Long and Asura. Mythic: Crowlion. Divine creator, Grew bored of the eternal life bestowed onto him, Touched the infinite darkness with his hands and rippled the sea into form. He reached with one arm, and tugged with the force of all, Pulled the mud that lurked deep inside, the belly of the water burst on the surface, settled, and land was formed. The God of life dropped a seed into the fertile land. The seed slumbered day in and night out, but in time, through the spilt magic of the land, it became the Nexus for which all life, plants and animals, sprung from the ground. As each day, the sun and 3 moons watched over, the Gods came and went, each one dropping a seed of their own on a bountiful garden. And in time, each seed grew and the ultimate came man. First were the elves, then the humans and then every other race fell after. Before long the land was filled with man, each a brother and sister. Asura faced a violent birth. After being dropped from the highest point of the heavens he fell through planes like a Boulder down a cliff. No plane could support his weight, no plane could stop his fall. Until he landed in Crowlion. Cushioned by the oceans of Crowlion, he threw a tsunami so large that the world nearly drowned in his fall. Long, the king of the sea, rose from the ocean, hateful of all life, challenged the demon Genaro Asura. The Dragon king and the great demon clashed for 3 centuries until The One came before both. The results of their battle laid asunder to the land leaving it but Nur. Only one thing remained, the Nexus of life, still asleep, but so.